Improvement in condensing steam-engines



No. 39,176. PATENTVEVIHDVJULYI v, 1863.

E. SICKELS. CONDENSER FOR STEAM ENGINES.

X UNITED STAT S Fries.

ATENT THEOPHILUSE. SICKELS, OF KENN E'DT SQUARE, PENNSYLVANIA.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. QQJW'S, dated July 7, .186

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THEoPHiLUs'E. SICK- nm, of Kennett Square, Chester county, and State of Pennsylvania, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Steam-Engines using Suriace-Uondensers; and I do" hereby declare that-the following is a full and accurate description of the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawing.

The nature of myinrention consists in the combination of an air-pump arid surface-condense with a. blower to force a current of air through thecondenser, for the purposes of condensing the steam and heating the air.

[do not confine myself toany particular form of 'airqiuiaip, condenser, or blower, or to any particular arrangement of them, but in the accompanying drawing this invention is shown as applied to a street railroad car propelled by steam-power, which would be one of its most. useful applications, as thereby there would be no escaping steam to frighten horses, nor would there be any necessity to carry the large amount of cold water to.condense the steam used in the cylinders, as has been the custom heretoi'ore in the engines used on street-railroads, known asfidunnnyengines.

F is the car. H is an apartment in the car, containing the boiler, cylinder, air-pump, and machinery for the purio'se of propelling the car and driving the blower and airpump. I I is the surface condenser, which may be of any ;approved form, into which-the exhaust-steam .v

passes through the pipe D. A'is the aimpump,

driveubythe engine for pumping the uncondischarging it at 0 Q,

7 doused gases from the condenser through the pipe E. ,B is the blower, also driven by the engine, which, by its revolutions, drives a current. of air through the condenser-tubes TT,

' (Dis the steam-cylinder, which is used to propel the car and drive the air pump A and blower B.

' Instead of discharging the heated air into the atmosphere at O 0, it may, if desirable,

be conducted into the car, and thereby serve to warm the passengers in cold weather. The hot water resulting from condensed steam in the condenser will accumulate in the bottom of the condenser, and would be used as feedwater for the boiler. This invention may also be used to 'great advantage for the purpose of heating buildings, as the-exhaust-steam in being condensed will heat the air passing through the tubes of the condenser, which may be conducted to the different apartments,

whereby the-heat remaining, inthe exhauststeam' will be utilized. I

Having thus fully described the'nature of my invention, what I claiin as new, and (lesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The combination and arrangement, in a condensing steam-engine, of an. air-pump and snrface eondenser, with a blower to force a current of air through the condenser to efl'ect the condensation of the steam and to'heat the air, substantially as set forth.

. 'JHEOPHILUS SlCKELS.

Witnesses.

- H. KING,

A, W. SMUH. 

